Meta has delayed its revised commercial terms until November 20, 2026, following objections from news publishers and digital advertisers who warn that the changes could allow the company to collect website content without permission or compensation.
The updated Meta commercial terms were initially scheduled to take effect on October 30. The company announced the three-week postponement on Friday, October 23, after media organizations raised concerns about the potential use of their content in artificial intelligence products.
The News/Media Alliance, representing more than 2,000 newspaper, magazine and digital media publishers in the United States, sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on October 22, demanding that the company withdraw the disputed provisions.
The association warned that the changes could allow Meta to collect news articles from websites associated with business accounts on Facebook, Instagram and other Meta platforms. It argued that such access could undermine publishers’ ability to negotiate licensing agreements with AI companies.
According to Nieman Journalism Lab, Meta removed an explicit reference to AI training from the proposed terms on October 16. However, legal experts said the remaining language could still permit broad collection and use of website content.
Meta has rejected claims that the revisions give it unrestricted access to publishers’ material. The company said the changes concern its advertising and business products and do not alter its existing web-crawling practices.
A Meta spokesperson told Reuters that the postponement would provide additional time to explain the changes to partners and stakeholders. Meta also maintained that website owners can continue using robots.txt files to communicate their preferences to automated crawlers.
The dispute has extended beyond the United States. Publishers and advertisers have submitted complaints to competition authorities in the European Union and Britain, seeking intervention over the proposed terms.
The European Alliance of News Agencies also called on Meta to remove the disputed website-crawling provision and respect publishers’ copyright protections.
The controversy reflects growing tensions between technology companies and news organizations over the commercial use of journalism in AI products. Publishers argue that unrestricted access to their reporting could weaken licensing revenue and threaten the financial sustainability of independent media.
